Expand Energy Shares Plummet 2.21% as $420M Volume Falls to 218th in Liquidity Amid CEO Insider Buys

Expand Energy (EXE) closed 2.21% lower on August 18, 2025, with a trading volume of $420 million, marking a 33.82% decline from the previous day’s activity and ranking 218th in market liquidity. The stock’s performance coincided with insider transactions and analyst activity that could influence investor sentiment. CEO Domenic J. Dellosso Jr. disclosed the purchase of 2,500 shares on August 15, 2025, at $95.86 per share, adding to his existing holdings of 166,715 shares. This follows a pattern of insider buying, including two separate purchases totaling $488,400 by Dellosso over the past six months.

Analysts have maintained a cautiously optimistic stance, with 12 firms assigning "Buy" or equivalent ratings in recent months. Notable upgrades include Piper Sandler’s "Overweight" recommendation on August 14, 2025, and Scotiabank’s "Sector Outperform" rating on July 11. Price targets from 15 analysts averaged $131, with recent estimates ranging from $120 to $145. Meanwhile, congressional activity showed limited but consistent interest, as Representative Robert Bresnaham purchased up to $15,000 in shares on April 8. These developments suggest a mixed market perception, balancing technical optimism with short-term volatility risks.

Backtesting of a volume-based trading strategy revealed mixed outcomes. Buying the top 500 stocks by daily trading volume and holding for one day from 2022 to 2025 yielded a 31.52% total return, with an average 1-day gain of 0.98%. This highlights the strategy’s ability to capture momentum but underscores the challenges of timing in a volatile market environment.